Page 17 of Edge of Wonder

Alice

“We’re going to solve the mystery of my death in a pub?” I asked, staring up at the painted wooden sign hanging from the front of the building.

Sebastian pulled open the door and gestured inside the dimly lit space. “It’s the perfect place to gather information. Plus, I’m starving, and I can’t work on an empty stomach.”

We made our way to the back of the room, weaving through packed tables and patrons deep into their cups. Mandolin music played from a trio in the corner, accompanied by robust shouts for more ale and raucous laughter.

Sebastian selected a table near the wall, likely hoping the shadows would help give him some cover, and no one would notice when he conversed with an empty chair. I sat across from him, scanning the pub. My nose wrinkled as a man swayed drunkenly in his seat and almost face-planted into his bowl of stew.

“Not the most reputable establishment,” I murmured under my breath.

“Yeah, well, when you’re investigating someone’s death, you don’t start at the women’s tea society.” He paused. “Except for the time a member murdered her cheating husband with poisoned chamomile. Never cross a woman who fixes your food.”

“Words to live by, handsome.” A barmaid approached the table and flashed Sebastian a flirtatious smile. She leaned forward, showing off her plunging neckline, and placed a foaming mug of ale in front of him. “What else can I get you?” she asked, running her finger along the ruffled edge of her bodice.

I threw eye-daggers at the woman as he ordered the fish stew and a side of crusty bread. The temperature in the room steadily dropped as the barmaid retrieved his meal. When she returned to place the steaming bowl on the table, she shivered, only staying for a moment before leaving to throw another log on the hearth in the corner.

“She’s gone. Can you ease up on the ghostly chill? You’ll freeze my lunch.”

I sniffed and looked up at the ceiling. “I’m still learning how to control it.”

“You need to relax and not get so agitated. Ghosts are emotional beings that release energy. Distraction helps.” He dug into his meal, seeming to savor the warm stew amid the frigid air circulating in our corner of the pub.

“All right.” My lips curled into a devious smile. “When was the last time you saw your family?”

Sebastian dropped his spoon into the bowl. “Not that kind of distraction.”

“Come on. Humor me. It’s not like I can tell anyone about your sordid past if that’s what you’re worried about. I’m a tomb for secrets.”

“You’re a very chatty tomb,” he mumbled, breaking off a piece of bread. “But if you must know. Not since I was sixteen. It’s been ten years.”

Suitably distracted, I leaned forward, my elbows skimming the table. “That long! Why won’t you go back? They must miss you terribly.”

“It’s complicated.”

“It can’t be that complicated. Try me. I’m currently bound to you until the bonding spell is broken. So, I’m not going anywhere at the moment.” At his hesitation, I continued, “I feel some ghostly shenanigans coming on. I might start flinging forks around the room. Uncontrollably, of course.”

Sebastian scowled at my persistence. “Fine, you win. It was because my life wasn’t my own.”

“I don’t follow. Whose life was it?” I paused for a moment, then nodded. “Wait, let me guess. This has something to do with the other Alice. The one you nearly abandoned this job for.” Even though no one could hear me, I lowered my voice to a whisper. “Was she your first love?”

“She was a girl in a mirror.”

I frowned and sat back in my chair. “You ran away from your life because you saw a girl in a mirror? Do you hear how that sounds?”

“Yes, but she’s a real person. I met her when I was eight, and last I heard, my mother, had hidden her away in some magically reinforced tower. A whole Rapunzel minus the hair situation.”

“With a shark-infested moat?”

“Most likely.”

“How exciting. But I guess you don’t have plans to risk life and limb to rescue the girl in the tower?”

“No way. That damsel has strings attached to her distress. The rescue is where her troubles start. I spent my entire childhood training relentlessly so I could join her on some fateful quest because my mother—who’s an oracle, by the way—saw us together in her mirror.”

“Your mother is an oracle and you don’t believe in fate?”

“Oh, I believe in it. It’s why I ran. I had no choice. My every waking moment was dedicated to a future I never asked for. If I wasn’t stuck in a library studying ancient texts, I was busy training. Knife skills, map reading, and even wilderness survival. The list was endless. There wasn’t time for friends or anything else.”

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